Toddler’s decomposing body parts found in Chicago park

Published 3:53 pm, Sunday, September 6, 2015

CHICAGO >> Dozens of police officers were searching a lagoon on Chicago’s West Side on Sunday where a toddler’s decomposed feet and hand were found.

The search began Saturday afternoon after a person called 911 to report seeing what turned out to be a toddler’s left foot floating in the Garfield Park lagoon. Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said officers subsequently discovered a right foot and a hand in the lagoon about 25 yards away. The remains were badly decomposed, he said.

Alderman Jason Ervin, who represents the neighborhood, told reporters that investigators told him the child was likely between the ages of 2 and 4 years old, which is old enough that family members or neighbors would have noticed if he or she had suddenly disappeared. He also said that there was no indication that there were remains from more than one person.

Guglielmi said that as of early Sunday afternoon, the department’s marine unit and divers hadn’t found any additional body parts. He said other items of interest were found, but he declined to go into detail. He also said that depending on what searchers find, the lagoon might be drained to make sure there are no more remains in it.

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Officers could be seen wading through cattail reeds and waist-high water on Sunday, feeling the bottom with their hands. Elsewhere, an officer was walking the perimeter of the lagoon and picking up items to put in a paper bag.

Investigators haven’t determined the child’s identity or how the child died, Guglielmi said. He said detectives were going through Chicago-area missing persons cases to determine if there could be a link to the remains.